Definition of an "Art+Story" print: A graphic ink art piece combined with written words (story, joke, poem) into one mixed media art piece. See examples in Series: Science and Natures, or at bottom of this page.

The "Art+Story" is a concept intended for the person who looks at Visual Art and thinks:

I don't get it. I don't feel anything. What is this supposed to mean?

The Story - the written part of the art piece - provides this person with a specific perspective from which he or she can then interpret the Visual Art. Think of it like a mental guide: a stepping stone over the murky waters of visual abstractness, to a place where the person can compare and judge the Visual Art against the topics and events described in the Story. Fancy people call this juxtaposition.

We experience this everyday with captions; the text usually underneath a photograph on a news website. We form connections between the words and images to better interpret the article and photograph. The main difference is that the Story does not have to explain the Visual Art; in fact, it may be more interesting if the Story is less explicit. There is no objective truth you are responsible for finding. This is about finding your own truth; your truest opinion about art. So while a photo encourages those who *aren't readers* to a read a news article, a Story in these "Visual Art + Story" pieces helps those with Visual Art *frustrations* interpret the art.

In the end, I hope that the observer may then be able to look back at the Story, and judge whether the Story has some value too, either on its own or with respect to the Visual Art. Extra bonus: sharing your interpretation experience with your friends!

It reads: Bar, hop, skip, jump, to the next stop, drop, ten bucks, for sad shots, across from eyes crossed, dates mocked, socked from stuff they couldn’t plant, tanked, and hearts sank… Bar, hop, skip, jump, to the next stop, drop fifty bucks, on oak, bartop, crop-top, hot, puff, of smoke as you beg for another sign, to slip inside her mind, and skirt, flirt, and wave goodbye in time… Bar, hop, skip, jump, to the next stop, drop, two hundred bucks, in clubs, snubs, dumb studs, who share stories of other places to drink, stink, not to think of the consequences, but confident bounces, to snorkel in more alcoholic streets to bar, hop, skip, and jump.